Dear colleague,
Happy Earth Day! Our Joint Coverage Week — focused on the overwhelming majority of people globally who want governments to do more to fight climate change — continues, with stellar coverage today from The Guardian, ICT, TIME, South Africa’s Daily Maverick, and many more. As a reminder, throughout the week, check in on the latest 89 Percent Project developments at our home online: 89Percent.org.
Here are just a few of the 89 Percent Project stories published so far:
- ‘Spiral of silence.’ Studies find that most people significantly underestimate popular support for strong climate action. They also find that when people are correctly informed about the magnitude of popular support for climate action that they become more supportive of it themselves — an indication that dispelling myths that climate is an unpopular issue could yield significant real-world results. “Such a shift, experts say, could be a gamechanger, pushing the world over a social tipping point into unstoppable climate progress,” Damian Carrington writes for The Guardian…
- Earth DAYS. April 22 has marked Earth Day since 1970. Yet for Indigenous communities, making time to consider and care for the planet has, “since time immemorial,” been a matter of everyday routine. “This is about how we think, how we live, our ways of knowing … about being human,” said one Inuit leader. “It represents our worldview of humans not being separate from nature.” By Stewart Huntington for ICT News, formerly Indian Country Today…
- The gift of gab. If huge majorities of people support climate action while also incorrectly suspecting that they’re in the minority, how can communities begin to flip the script? The best way is for individuals to be bold and raise their concerns about climate change, as well as their support for action, in the company of family and friends. It might feel like a gamble, but evidence shows that people are more likely to take action when encouraged to do so by people they know and respect. By Jeffrey Kluger for TIME…
- Bridging the digital gap. Research finds that internet connectivity and access to technology are critical to shaping Africans’ attitudes on climate change, as well as their sense of who is responsible for fixing it (is it on governments or everyday Africans?). A warm profile of a 30-year-old farmer and jack of all trades in Lesotho demonstrates how technology can breathe life into democratic processes and, specifically, mobilize support for climate action. By Leonie Joubert for South Africa’s Daily Maverick…
- Climate-smart diets. Not only does 89% of the world’s population support government action to fight climate change, many are ready to make change in their own daily lives. Perhaps contrary to expectations, in the US, 60% of the public believes government food policies should address the impact of food production on the environment — a critical finding, given that our food systems constitute one-third of greenhouse gas emissions globally. By Anay Mridul for Green Queen…
- Bad news for Big Oil. “We’re just giving people what they want,” an imagined oil company executive says in this short comedic sketch. “If people wanted more action on climate change, instead of fossil fuel business as usual, they’d say so, right?” But in fact studies show people do want that action — reputable studies, based on interviews with nearly 130,000 people in 125 countries. The numbers are undeniable; as another executive laments: “89 percent is crazy. Can you think of anything that 89 percent of people agree on?” From Crooked Ideas and Crooked Media…
A reminder to CCNow partners: Many 89 Percent stories, including some of those above, are available for you to republish in the CCNow Sharing Library. Check them out, along with a lot of other great work from members of our community!
Today, CCNow hosted a conversation on how journalists can cover the shifting landscape of climate activism, at a time when officials aim to curtail protesters’ activities and as all manner of crises are straining public attention. CCNow’s Theresa Riley spoke with Drilled’s Amy Westervelt, American University sociologist Dr. Dana Fisher, and Sunrise Movement activist John Paul Mejia. Check out a recording.
Also, check out the latest edition of Power & Progress, our biweekly newsletter about the politics of the renewable energy transition, which digs into the resurgence of climate denial as government policy — despite the fact that denial runs counter to shifting public beliefs about climate change. Check out the Power & Progress archive and sign up to get it every other Tuesday.
Thanks for reading! We’ll be back in your inbox tomorrow with more stories from The 89 Percent Project, including an op-ed from CCNow co-founders Mark Hertsgaard and Kyle Pope — about why we launched this effort and how it relates to the mass protests against the Trump administration held across the US this past weekend; the piece will be available to partners for republication.
In the meantime, if you’re writing your own 89 Percent stories, be sure to send them our way at editors@coveringclimatenow.org. And, as always, help spread the word about The 89 Percent Project and amplify our partners’ great coverage; on social media, we’re using the hashtag #The89Percent.
Onward,
The CCNow Team